"Greenhouse Gas Reduction of 600 Tons Annually"…Eco-Friendly 'Gaepae Jangchi' Developed to Combat Air Pollution

Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute Team Develops Using Eco-Friendly Gas

Opening and closing device using eco-friendly gas. Photo by Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] An eco-friendly gas that can replace sulfur hexafluoride gas (SF6), a major cause of air pollution, and a switch device utilizing it have been developed by domestic researchers. With President Moon Jae-in's declaration of '2050 Carbon Neutrality' at the end of last year, if practically applied, it is expected to significantly reduce massive amounts of carbon dioxide emissions.

On the 17th, according to the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI), a research team led by Song Ki-dong and Oh Yeon-ho from the New Power Equipment Research Center recently developed for the first time in Korea an eco-friendly gas that can replace SF6 and a 72.5kV 31.5kA class switch device (a type of switch that blocks or allows the flow of current). The manufacturing and testing of the switch device were handled by the domestic power equipment company Seondo Electric.

SF6 gas has been used in the power equipment field for over 50 years due to its excellent insulating performance that prevents electricity conduction and its arc extinguishing performance that cuts off fault currents when system faults occur. However, SF6 has a global warming potential 23,500 times that of carbon dioxide (CO2), and once leaked into the atmosphere, it remains for as long as 3,200 years, affecting the Earth's atmospheric environment.

There have been global efforts to develop switch devices using SF6 alternative gases, but none have succeeded. Companies in Japan and the United States developed SF6 alternative gases, but many issues were found, such as genetic mutation problems (Japan) and global warming concerns (U.S.).

The research team developed a 'low-carbon gas' that can replace SF6 and the design technology for a '72.5kV 31.5kA class switch device' applying this gas. The most notable feature is that the switch device uses a gas mixture of naturally occurring CO2 (carbon dioxide) and O2 (oxygen) in appropriate ratios, rather than artificially synthesized substances. It has a global warming potential of less than 1, making it very eco-friendly and harmless to humans. The research team estimates that applying this gas to all 72.5kV switch devices nationwide could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 6 million tons annually. The gas cost is also nearly half that of conventional SF6 gas. The team also independently developed design technology that can predict insulation and interruption performance.

KERI plans to primarily use the developed switch device in transmission networks for interconnection of small-scale distributed power sources. Dr. Oh Yeon-ho, a developer of the research, said, "By developing SF6 alternative gases and power equipment, which have been led by overseas companies, we expect import substitution effects," adding, "It can be expanded and applied not only to distribution-class switch devices below 72.5kV but also to ultra-high voltage equipment above 145kV, contributing significantly to strengthening the competitiveness of domestic power equipment companies through technology transfer."

KERI has completed domestic and international patent applications related to the developed core technology and plans to actively pioneer the global market by expanding the core design technology to 145kV class switch devices. Currently, the global ultra-high voltage switch device market size exceeds 33 trillion won, and it is expected to grow further due to carbon neutrality declarations and the launch of new climate regimes in response to global warming.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.